Due to the ease of use and the proliferation of digital devices, the number of print devices (also referred to as printers) in use has increased in recent years. One usual operation in a printer is the scaling of an image to be printed. Scaling, as used herein, refers to the change in the number of pixels and is usually described by the ratio of the number of pixels in the input image to the number of pixels in the output image. For example, if for every three consecutive pixels in a column of the input image there are two consecutive pixels in the corresponding column of the output image, the scaling is referred to as 3:2 scaling.
Scaling is conventionally performed on the input image pixel data onto pixel by pixel basis. In one instance, the input image pixels are individually “windowed” by selecting a small window of the input image pixels that surround the pixel that is being processed for scaling. The pixel data for the pixel in the scaled (output) image is derived from the values of the pixel data of the input image pixel that is being processed and selected ones of the input image pixels located in the “window.”
However, typically, the scaling operation requires extensive computation or arithmetic operations on the pixel data of the pixel being processed and the surrounding pixels. In conventional methods, the window of the input image pixels that surrounds the pixel being processed is small and the computations or arithmetic operations are performed using dedicated hardware or processors and software instructions.
Alternatively, the scaling processing instructions can be described in software. The software can then be embodied into a computer memory in the printer. (Software when used as a permanent part of a device is referred to as “firmware” or “microcode.”) Performing the scaling operation solely using software can be typically slow as compared to using dedicated hardware.
There is therefore a need to provide methods and systems for performing the scaling operations that provide the advantages of both dedicated hardware and of software while avoiding the disadvantages of either a dedicated hardware or software.